


The Fish

by falicewins



Series: Falice One Shots by falicewins [30]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Alice hates FP's fish, Alice is insecure, F/M, FP and Alice fight, FP wants to take job that makes him happy, Soft Falice, Verbal Fight, argument, falice - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-13
Updated: 2020-12-13
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:15:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28053747
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/falicewins/pseuds/falicewins
Relationships: Alice Cooper/FP Jones II
Series: Falice One Shots by falicewins [30]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1626064
Comments: 3
Kudos: 2





	The Fish

“Is this your way of breaking up with me?” Alice crossed her arms, her eyes involuntarily filling with tears. 

FP frowned. What was she talking about? “Wait, what?”

“Taking a job that far away, which basically means the end for us.” She pointed out, raising her voice once more. 

“Al, that’s not what I am saying. I thought you wanted for me to do something that I love. I found that now, and suddenly you’re not on board?” He grew frustrated with her, feeling that she only supported him when it was convenient. Was the situation ideal? No. Definitely not. But he was suffocating in Riverdale and finally found something that would be perfect for him. 

“I’m not on board because it’s all just a cover up because you’re not man enough to tell me that this is over.” Alice poked her tongue into her cheek and shook her head as she turned to the kitchen, wanting this conversation to be over.

“Where did you get that conclusion? I don’t want to lose you, Alice. I just want a job that I love. Is that too much to ask from my significant other?” He tried to stay calm, but the more she rambled about irrational things, the more he felt like he was talking to the wall.

“And you couldn’t find that job any closer? How do you think we’re going to manage being apart from each other?” Alice turned on her heel, back to face him again, her eyes spitting fire. She was beyond mad. FP stayed silent.

“Well?” She spat, demanding an answer. 

“I figured we could talk about that together, as a team. Couldn’t be more wrong.” FP gritted through his teeth, wanting to turn around and head off upstairs to take a shower to cool off. There was just no talking to her, not when her emotions were in control.

“Sure, walk away. Very mature.” Alice scoffed, not believing that he was bailing in the middle of an argument. It struck a nerve in FP.

“I’m the childish one?! You don’t even hear me out!” He exclaimed, after turning back to face her. 

“Hearing you out?! It’s clear that you don’t want to be around me, FP! Crystal clear!” She yelled, tears stinging in her eyes.

“You know what, if you don’t want to be here so badly you need to take a job basically at the other side of the world, go already.” She huffed. Her eyes fell on the fish above the phone. In a few quick steps she had reached it and took it away with a hard tug.

“And take that ugly fish with you. I’m done looking at it.” She shoved it into his hands. FP let out a bitter laugh. 

“You are so fucking unbelievable.” He mumbled under his breath, his blood boiling dangerously. 

“Sounds like you are the one wanting an out Alice, picking a fight over everything. If you want me gone, fine. I’ll go.” He threw the fish in front of him with a bang, accidentally but successfully breaking the fish from the wood. The sound made her jump a little, and she watched him leave. The door closed with a slam, leaving her speechless. 

**

She had felt bad about their argument all day, knowing that she had gone too far. It were her own insecurities taking over. Alice knew he loved her. Her heart tried to convince her of that all day. But there were times where her mind tried to tell her that he didn’t. That maybe there was no happily ever after for them. 

Even when Alice usually went to bed early, she couldn’t fall asleep not knowing where FP had gone off too. She knew he always needed some time to calm down, since he is just as much of a hothead as she is. It wasn’t until after midnight that he heard the front door.

On her tiptoes, she went downstairs, finding him in a shimmer of light. 

“FP…” She started quietly, making him turn on his heel. He hadn’t heard he come his way.

“I don’t want to talk, Alice.” He said shortly, turning his back to her again. His eyes fell on the blanket draped over the chair and took the pillow with him as well. It was going to be a night on the couch.

Alice swallowed. This was new. Usually, he was always the one that wanted to talk to her and helped her see that it wasn’t okay to go to bed mad at each other. But tonight? He was the one keeping his distance. She had really gone too far.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered, hoping that he would hear her. He ignored her statement and instead settled himself on the couch, still dressed in his jeans and flannel. Even when it was uncomfortable, the last thing he wanted was to go upstairs and change. 

“I want to sleep, would you mind?” Before waiting for an answer, he turned around, telling her with his body that he was done talking. Alice accepted his wishes and quietly made her way up again, not wanting to upset him any more. That night, she fell asleep in a cold bed, wishing for his body to be next to hers, while he felt in an uneasy sleep, wanting nothing more than to hold her until he’d fall asleep. But he had to make a point that she had hurt him. 

**

  
  
  
  
  


The following morning, Alice had tried to look for his eyes at breakfast. He had purposely avoided her gaze on him, still not being ready to talk. He would have if he knew what to say, but he was afraid it would come down to an ultimatum: their relationship or a new job. It would be her. It would always be her. But the thought of his new job made him so happy, he didn’t want that being taken away from him either. One way or another, it felt like he was going to lose. And he didn’t want her to make a decision for him that should be something mutual. 

Even when he was unemployed at the moment, he stood up from the kitchen counter, took his jacket and left out of the door. The tension was too much. Jughead frowned.

“Where are you going?” He called after him. The door closed, without an answer. 

“Mom, what is going on with FP?” Betty chimed in as well now, raising her eyebrow confused.

“We had an argument.” Alice confessed silently. 

“About what?” She asked, wanting to know more.

“Doesn’t matter.” Alice dismissed it. Jughead shrugged his shoulders, until his eyes fell on the fish on the dinner table. He noticed that it was broken.

“What happened to Dad’s fish?” He asked her, a little suspiciously. He could feel that it had something to do with their fight.

Alice ignored his question, not sure what to tell the boy. He shared a look with Betty, who thought exactly the same.

“Whatever is going on, talk it out. Seeing you ignore each other is even worse than all the PDA at breakfast.” She told her mother, before getting up from her chair to get ready for school. 

**

Alice knew better than to wait until he would get home, but she did it anyway. Around ten, she heard the front door open. From the top of the stairs, she saw him falling onto the couch, exhaling deeply. It told her that he was just as much struggling as she was. She looked down at the fish in her hands and slowly went down the stairs and made her way over to him. He followed her every move, expecting for her to say something. But she didn't.

Instead. she handed him back the fish with a guilty look on her face. He noticed that she had fixed it. It wasn’t broken anymore. Just when she turned back on her heel, he grabbed her hand, making her turn back to him. 

“Al, wait…” He said softly. Her insecure blue eyes met his sad brown ones, both telling each other with one simple look that neither of them wanted to fight. 

“I don’t want an out. I love you. I want to be with you. Do you believe that?” He asked her, his hand still holding hers. Alice swallowed, but nodded through her tears. She felt the slightest tug on her hand, telling her to sit down next to him, which is what she did.

“Me wanting a job that I really like doesn’t mean I love you any less. I was never going to take it without asking you first.” He told her, intertwining their fingers before squeezing her hand. He could see the tears swim in her eyes.

“I know that. I let some demons I thought I had let go take over me, that wasn’t fair to you.” She said quietly, her cheeks flushing. From the moment he had left out of the door, she had felt incredibly bad. 

“Do you want to talk about them? What is it that made you so upset?” He asked her sweetly, wanting to understand where her reaction came from. Alice sniffed and looked at him, realizing that with him, she had it all. She was just so terrified to lose it.

“It’s hard to believe that you’re really with me and that we are together like this. Sometimes it still feels like a dream that can burst any second. I was afraid it would.” She confessed, feeling ashamed for being so insecure in their relationship even after hours and hours of talking about it.

“Al, look at me.” He pulled his index finger under her chin, making sure she would face him.

“It’s real. Us, together? That’s no dream. It’s reality. And it’s forever. Nothing, especially no job, could ever take me away from you.” FP said softly, offering her his signature sweet smile that always made her feel butterflies. 

“Truth is, the reason I even considered taking the job in the first place is because I think we’re at a place where we are strong enough to handle long distance. Our relationship has never been this strong.” He told her, making her smile. 

Alice knew that he was right, she had never even looked at it that way. They had never been in a place where they could’ve handled a thing like this, but he was so confident that nothing could break them that he wanted to think about doing something that makes him happy. 

“When I said I’d always back you up, I meant that. Sorry for making you feel that I wasn’t supporting you. I want you to do what you love, I just wish we wouldn’t have to miss one another.” She confessed, her eyes teary. He placed his hand on her thigh and softly stroked up and down, hoping that it would make her feel better.

“I know you were scared. I am too. We took that out on each other. All I wanted was for us to talk about the possibility.” He said softly. Her hand was placed above his and she leant in to press a soft kiss on his lips. 

“I could even ask to work from home a few days a week. That way I won’t be away much. We can discuss it all. And if we decide we’re not comfortable with being apart for any time, then I won’t take the job.” He summed up, making her feel a lot better. If she would have thought rational they could have talked this out immediately, but the thought of losing him had scared her so much, that her reaction had almost led to the thing she was most afraid of. 

“I do want you to do what makes you happy, I hope you know that.” She said softly, her hand coming to rest on his stubble as her thumb stroked his jaw.

“You make me happy, Alice. More than anything.” He kissed her, letting them both melt into each other. They smiled when they pulled back, relieved that all was well again between them. His eyes fell on the fish that he had laid next to him on the couch and took it in his hands again.

“Thank you for fixing it.” FP chuckled. He knew how much she hated that thing, but as a compromise he got permission to hang it above the phone instead off at the entrance by the door as Alice didn’t want for people to see that ugly marine animal when they walk in. 

“I know you like it. It was the least I could do.” She smiled and looked down at it.

“You’re right, though. It’s ugly.” He shook his head laughing, knowing perfectly well that her opinion was very valid. He wasn’t even sure why he liked it so much.

“So, we can throw it away?” Alice tried to bring it, a grin on her face. 

“Oh, definitely not. I’m keeping it because I know you hate it.” He smirked, earning a playful push from her.

“You’re lucky I love you.” She said sweetly, kissing his cheek.

“Let the fish be the reminder.” He teased, pulling her close to his body.

“Come, let’s go upstairs. It was way too cold with you.” FP stood up from the couch and took her hand, tugging her his way before scooping her up, the sound of her laughs echoing through the living room. It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard and in that moment he knew that even with a miserable job in town, he’d be the happiest man on earth with her by his side.


End file.
